Author: Dr. William Rassman

Posted on

Propecia Has Made a Huge Positive Effect on My Life – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Firstly, thanks for such an informative website and advice. I’m a 35 yo male with hair receding to the temples and thinning to the top (but not back of the crown). I’ve noticed a few negative posts recently about propecia and my own experience is very far from that (now 2 1/2 years of use). There were minimal negative side effects initially which fully cleared in 8 weeks. I used to shower every morning and literally count hairs up to 100 on my hands. This completely slowed to a negligible amount after 3 months of propecia use and whilst I am sceptical about any substantial re-growth in my case, this drug has made a huge positive effect on my life by vastly slowing down my hair loss. Thanks again for the great site!

Thanks for sharing your experience. It should get better after a year.

Posted on

My Doctor Said There is 0% Chance My Transplants Will Not Grow – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dr. Rassman,

How likely is it that transplanted grafts do not survive after the surgery? I’ve heard from my doctor that there is virtually 0% chance that they will not grow, but I have seen no evidence of new growth at over one year from my surgery so I am at a loss to explain my outcome. Thanks.

Block Quote

There is never certainty in anything in this world. Hair transplants usually grow (greater than 99% of patients will experience good growth) provided that the doctor and team perform the surgery correctly. If you have not had growth one year after a hair transplant, then something went wrong. Get a second opinion and you will then know.

Posted on

Taking 2.5mg of Finasteride in the Morning, 2.5mg at Night – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

I have been on Proscar quartered for 3 months and now in months 4 I started to cut them in half and take one half in the AM and the other half in the PM. Do you think this may be a benefit or not? Also I have been using Minoxidil for almost 2 years. I am 37 yr old male and just went to a Norwood 2 – 2 1/2. I do not have a camera to send you a pic. Thank you for your time Doctor and for having a great forum.

Block Quote

If you are not getting side effects from the high dose of the drug, I doubt that this high dose will hurt you, but you do not need to take it twice a day. Try it just once a day (1/2 pill).

Posted on

Can My Female Hair Loss Be Reversed with Minoxidil? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

sir,
I am a 25 yr old asian female and suffer from androgenetic alopecia(aga) for last 4 yrs. my question is when you say advanced thinning what do you mean by that?? i mean approximately after how many yrs after the process of miniaturisation has started will the chances of reversal thru minoxidil will be difficult?? lets say in my case i have lost more than half of my hair and in the front where scalp shines vellus hairs (thin fine white in colour less than 1cm) are present. would you call it advanced thinning or extensive miniaturisation making minoxidil difficult/impossible to work??

Block Quote

For women, there are no good rules to follow so I can not answer your question. Try the minoxidil and watch it over a 12 month period and you will then know the answer to your question. Time must pass and twice a day use needs to be maintained.

Posted on

Do You Think Hair Transplantation will Become a Defunct Practice? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Doctor Rassman,

Do you believe that hair transplantation will ever become a defunct practice (due to a cure or a commercially viable alternative)? Do you believe this will happen in YOUR lifetime?

If there is a medical cure for balding (medicine, cloning, etc), I think I would become a very rich man. After all, who else is better equipped to treat balding than the doctors who are already in the practice? I should hope that there will be a cure in my lifetime!

Balding Forum - Hair Loss Discussion

Paid advertisements (not an endorsement):


Posted on

If My Father Lost All His Hair, Am I Wasting Time Trying to Prevent My Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I have slight frontal balding and some thinning at the top of my head. I have no blad spot yet but its getting close to that. I am 28, my dad was completely bald on top, a stage 7 I guess. I have been using Propecia for 3 weeks.

I have 3 questions,

  1. Is Nisim or Nizoral any help to my hair loss?
  2. Seeing my father lost almost all of his hair on top am I wasting my time trying to prevent my hair loss.
  3. Do you know of any good hair loss doctors in the Tampa, Florida area.

Thanks in advance.

If you are 28 years old and are not completely bald as your father almost certainly was, then you will probably not be following his pattern. All Class 7 men have lost most of their hair before they were 28 and if you have no bald spot now, I would doubt that you would in the Class 7 hair loss pattern. If you get your hair mapped out for miniaturization you might be able to tell where you will be losing more hair, possibly even when (short term vs long term). See an expert and find out for yourself.

The answers to your questions are as follows:

  1. I’ve said it before, but, “Nizoral is a good shampoo. I do not believe it is necessarily good at regrowing hair. There is not enough scientific data to support hair growth claims.” As for Nisim, they make yet another herbal product that is not proven by the FDA to work. As regular readers of this site should know, I do not recommend products that aren’t FDA approved for treating hair loss. You can try it if you want. They say they offer a guarantee, but I’ll leave that up to you. Buyer beware.
  2. The choice for you is to be proactive or not. I think that you are not going to follow your father’s pattern, considering you said he was a class 7 by the time he was your age.
  3. I usually do not supply referrals for transplant docs, but you can check ISHRS.org’s physician search to find one in your area. Be sure to use the internet to research the doctor you chose.

Balding Forum - Hair Loss Discussion

Paid advertisements (not an endorsement):


Posted on

Should I Be Concerned That My Hair Falls Out with the Slightest Touch? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello, Im a 20 year old male with very blonde thin hair. I know that it is normal to lose roughly 100 hairs daily, but i notice that when i run my hand through my hair, hair seems to fallout more extensively then one would consider normal. Also i know you strongly suggest miniturization, but this loss of hair happens all over my head, not just in the typical balding areas. I am concerned because my hair is falling out so easily, the slightest touch or force applied to my hair will cause me to lose hair. Also, my grandfather on my dads side is bald, but my dad isn’t, and my grandfather on my mothers side is bald. So my question is should i be concerned about balding in regards to how easily my hair falls out all over my head, and based on genetics as well?

We emphasize on miniaturization studies because at this time it is one of the most accurate predictors of baldness. The number of hairs that you lose on a daily basis could be changed due to the physiologic alterations.

Although family history of baldness could be helpful to anticipate the balding pattern, it is not always a perfect method. You need to be seen by a good hair specialist and only after a thorough evaluation and considering all variables one can say whether you are balding or are only experiencing a physiologic shedding. It does sound like you may be obsessing over your hair, so an objective mapping of your scalp for miniaturization would be helpful to understand what is really happening to you.

Posted on

Will Finasteride Harm My Growing Body? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

hey doc, im 19 and i just recently started propecia for my thinning crown. Is this too young to start fin? i think that my facial hair is only about 70% in, because im so young will fin effect my facial hair? and will it affect my height if im still growing? will it stop me from broadening out as most plp do in around my age?

its a bit scarely to be losing hair at this age plz help me out

Propecia (finasteride) may affect facial and body hair growth. I do not believe it is a clear published fact, but I have seen and heard anecdotal stories. In women with Polycystic Ovaries where hirsutism (excess body hair) is a problem, finasteride has been tested and is moderately effective at reducing body hair. Based upon this observation, Propecia MAY diminish facial and body hair. While it is my personal opinion that it is a very low possibility because of the thousands of young men I treated over the past 8 years, only one patient reported reduced body hair (he was over 40). If you are concerned about growth of body and facial hair issues, I would advise you to:

  1. Talk with your doctor about these concerns
  2. Continue Propecia and see if it is an ongoing problem (when you stop it everything should reverse)
  3. Consider stopping the Propecia (but the risks of hair loss then have to be balanced in the decision process)

Balding Forum - Hair Loss Discussion

Paid advertisements (not an endorsement):


Posted on

Hair Loss InformationCan I See a Trichologist to Diagnose Hair Loss? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Would trichologists be a good place to go to diagnose genetic hair loss. Consultation with examination is a bit expensive so I’d like your opinion on it. I’m seeing one in 2 days and what he plans to do is take some of my hair and examine it under the microscope. Would you have any idea on the effectiveness for diagnosis with this method vs the scalp mapping for miniaturization? I’m 26 asian male with a full head of hair (although not as thick or a lot compared to in HS)Is it still a good idea to see these specialist anyways even though Im not exhibiting any clear observational signs of balding (my diabetic father thinned and had bad hair loss at 46 and his younger brother balded in his teens…grandfather on both sides have hair although diabetic mother on father’s side has extremely thin hair pretty much balding)

Block Quote

I can not tell you what the trichologist will see or what he/she is looking for. Without miniaturization studies I do not believe that hair loss patterns for genetic hair loss can be anticipated. The miniaturization study is a microscopic examination of your scalp. If your trichologist is doing this, and knows what to look for, then you’re a step in the right direction.